Janus
by EmeraldLily7918
Summary: He's the trickster of Rikkai Dai. Or, he used to be. Because he goes to Nagoya Seitoku now, and, despite the dull personalities in the school, she stands out. She's colorful. And he's going to turn her life upside-down. NiouOC. Rated K though may change.
1. A New Beginning

A/N: Special thank-you at the beginning, what?! Yeah, I want to throw out a big thank-you to my friend/unofficial-yet-official-beta **Allthequirkythings**! Without her, this would probably not be as satisfactory as it is now. Or at least, I'm quite satisfied. I'm not sure what you guys think, although hopefully you'll like this. Anyway, just—a shout-out to her for helping me critique this, develop the characters, and just general awesomeness. Be sure to check out her fanfics. Oh, plus, she helped me come up with the title for this. 'Cause I'm terrible with titles. LOL.

* * *

**A New Beginning**

Niou ran nimble fingers through his inky hair, tugging a strand down to inspect it with his eyes. His felt satisfaction bubble up inside him at its solid, black hue and let it spring up on his head again. Tossing his head and relishing the lightness he felt upon losing the rattail he used to own, he tucked his fingers into the straps of his backpack and forced one foot in front of the other to Nagoya Seitoku.

He didn't know much about what his life would be like in this new place; what he did know was that things were changing, thus he had to change himself, ergo the change in hair-color and loss of rattail. He didn't mind really—he had been planning to cut that old thing off. It was getting out of hand and it really wasn't his signature hairstyle anymore; the people in Rikkai Dai were starting to copy it.

He didn't mind leaving Rikkai either. Yagyuu had transferred to a different school at the beginning of high school; Yanagi was gone, too; and Niou himself had quit tennis, though mostly for the sake of keeping himself unpredictable. Besides, with the loss of a third of what people regarded as Rikkai's renowned "Big Three," the reporters and their peers at the school were beginning to lose interest in the tennis team. It wasn't that girls didn't fawn over the regulars anymore, or boys didn't stare longingly as what remained of the "original members" passed through the halls—it was just, they didn't fawn as much, not with the uprising of the school academic teams.

"Hey? Are you new here?"

Niou dug his heels in behind him as a beaming girl stepped nimbly in front of him. He sidestepped around her and continued on his way.

"Wait up!" She whirled around haphazardly and caught his wrist in a surprisingly strong grip. "You're Niou Masaharu, right?" A flush grew on her cheeks. Niou saw her draw something out of her pocket—a picture, perhaps—and compare it with his profile.

"Oh, Kami-sama! Sorry!" she gasped, covering her mouth with both her hands. "You aren't him, are you? I'm so sorry." She ran a few steps ahead of him, then, whirled around mid-step and held out a hand to him, a small smile quirking up her lips.

"I'm Narita Kazue— I mean, Kazue Narita. Well, that depends really—where are you from?"

Niou's gaze flitted over her flushed face and his eyes narrowed in a cat-like manner. "Masaharu Niou— I mean, Niou Masaharu. Well, that depends really—where are you from?" He imitated her flustered tone.

Her eyes grew wide. "You _are_ Niou Masaharu! What'd you do to your hair?" Her brow arched up. "It isn't black in the picture and"—she stopped and peered around him—"where'd your rattail go—?"

_Annoying girl…_

She stiffened suddenly, eyes widening fractionally in something like surprise, and shook her head stonily before he could think of a reply. "I'm sorry. Not my business. Anyways, I'm part of the school welcoming committee. Well, actually, I'm _the_ school welcoming committee." She tucked her chin to her chest with a sheepish grin, peering up at him through long eyelashes.

_She's kind of ridiculous,_ Niou thought, lip curling up in preparation for a snarl and sharp words to drive her away. But he stopped before his lips could part—_but…cute, I suppose._ And he smoothly shifted his lips into what he knew would look like a dashing smile.

A chiming sound filled the school grounds, then. Kazue tilted her head up lopsidedly, a smile spreading across her face. "That was the school bell," she explained as the fourth chime faded into the air.

Niou saw her eyes dart to his left wrist, where the Nagoya Sei uniform sleeve hitched up on his wristwatch. _Observant…_

"Um…yeah, we have about five to ten seconds before Aresu-sensei marks us tardy." She reached for his wrist, but her hand stopped before her fingers could meet the soft cloth of his uniform, as though repelled by some invisible barrier. She snuck a glance up at him through her ebony hair; her eyes squinted slightly as she wondered whether or not she was allowed to grab him.

Niou caught her gaze, and raised an eyebrow challengingly, as though daring her to do it, to touch him. Her mouth parted in shock, eyes darting down to focus on his sleeve intently. Niou fought down a smirk; any longer and this would become really awkward for her. But she seemed to realize this, because her lips curved barely into a frown as she pushed her hand through the barrier and wrapped slender fingers around his wrist, being careful to avoid touching his skin. In a fluid motion, she twisted around and began to drag him after her. But he dug his heels in again and slipped easily out of her loose grip. His eyes prompted _Now what?_ when she turned back to him with eyes that asked _What now?_

After a few moments, she shrugged nonchalantly. "Okay, fine. It's okay; you're still adjusting, new school and whatnot. I get that." Her supporting smile almost convinced Niou that she was totally oblivious to the exchange—_almost_. "I'll give you the full tour of Nagoya Sei later. Your doc said we're in the same class, so just go to the third floor, second door to the left. Room 3-19." She turned on her heels and began trotting at a stiff pace to the school, managing to enter with the last of the students.

Niou stood outside.

The whole exchange had only lasted around a minute.

* * *

By lunchtime, Niou had found every nook and cranny in Nagoya Sei. His favorite was a cavity built into the school, hidden by a row of cherry blossom trees that were shedding their light pink petals. When he arrived with his lunch, the wind had blown the petals into a cozy corner, forming something like a velvety seat. He knew he was unseen as he slipped into it, positioning his legs in such a position that he could stand up the moment someone arrived.

The same four chimes sounded again, announcing the official start of lunch. Voices soon filled the grounds as students filed out of the main doors. Up above, some stray students prattled on the rooftop, which contained a few park benches and a measly untended garden, a bundle of weeds compared to Yukimura's Garden of Eden back in Rikkai.

Barely perceptible over the chatter, the whisper of footsteps over well-tended grass met Niou's ears. He stiffened and stood up silently, waiting to see if they would approach. They stopped right outside his niche, and a voice called out, "Niou-san?"

Kazue's head and body appeared with ease through the tree-line, smiling a knowing smile. Niou didn't like that smile, he didn't like the _knowingness_ of it. "I thought you'd be here," she told him softly.

"Did you stalk me?" he drawled smoothly.

She didn't seem affected as she should have been. Instead, a soft smile replaced the knowing one as she stopped directly in from of him, eyes scanning the place with a dreamy quality in their depths. "I used to come here in my first year," she told him, seemingly on a whim.

Niou watched her.

Suddenly—too suddenly, Niou thought—her eyes and every part of her seemed to change into someone else. Her voice was different, too, as she chirruped, "I saw you out the third-story window. I thought I could, you know, give you the tour." She swept her arm before her symbolically.

_No reaction, don't react,_ Niou instructed himself, keeping his facial muscles in rein. "Alright," he said in a bored tone.

"Okay, um…" The Kazue that stood in front of him—the peppy one, he decided—reached for his wrist, but a different Kazue took over during the hand's path forward, and she swiveled her elbow up to make like she was scratching her head.

_Hmm…weird,_ Niou mused.

"Okay, so, here begins your tour of Nagoya Sei." Peppy Kazue had returned. "First stop is right here: the place I have come to regard as my secret hideaway. I don't know how it was built, I don't know who found it first, I just know that it is a good place to go to when you're crying but don't want anybody to see."

Kazue turned around and began an overexaggerated march toward the school. She led Niou through the main doors and navigated the three-story building, explaining the workings of Nagoya Sei in a continuous babble, filled with nonsense and sometimes, when the more serious side of her emerged, actual information.

Niou wasn't really listening though; he already knew all of this stuff. His mind was working to try and figure her out. He wasn't sure whether to associate her with an incomplete three-dimensional puzzle or a two-dimensional wallflower trying to pop out. His gaze traveled along the curve of her nose, along the line of her jaw, and lower, until he'd scanned the entire length of her body as a robot would…though not entirely without appreciation.

Feeling the heat of his stare, she stopped and turned to him, and a blush bloomed on her cheeks. He stopped short rather close to her, to test her reaction. "Um…so, yeah, you play tennis, right? We have a pretty good tennis team. I'm sure you'll be a great addition."

Typical.

"No, I don't think so," Niou said slowly.

"Okay, um"—she turned around and started walking, but Niou felt a tug under his foot and realized that he was stepping on her shoelace. He darted his hand out and—even though he could have just grabbed her hand—purposely wound it around her lower back, freezing her plummet to the ground. He shifted his foot off her shoelace, keeping his eyes on her reddening face.

Kazue stiffened in his arms. Serious Kazue had emerged. She stiffly propped her legs up under her and stood up, stepping a good two meters away from him as soon as she'd gained her footing. "I'm sorry, Niou-san. Thank you," she said monotonously, all color leaving her cheeks.

She was suddenly very gray, and that made her all the more colorful in Niou's eyes.

He stood hipshot and coolly considered her.

"Okay, we also have a horticulture club." She bent down and retied her shoelace, pushing back a strand of hair that fell over her face in the process. Mechanically, she stood up when she had finished and began a brisk walk to the main door. "I'm not sure if that's a hobby of yours or not, but you could consider it." She stopped at the top of the stairs outside, eyes cast downward. "So, that's the end of your tour. You have"—her gaze shifted to his watch, but Niou had already concealed it with his sleeve "—well, you still have time to finish lunch."

"Narita, there you are." A girl that Niou had seen around approached them. "Oh, who's the new kid?" she asked, jerking her head at him dismissively.

"Niou Masaharu."

The girl's eyes bugged out of their sockets as her head swiveled to him with a new sense of awe. "_You're_ Niou Masaharu? Don't you play for the Rikkai tennis team?" She narrowed her eyes suspiciously at him. "Are you here to spy on Nagoya Sei? Is that why you didn't play for the team during the last two tournaments—because you were working on your application here?"

Niou ignored her, openly staring at Kazue. She blushed under his stare, but refused to look at him, afraid to make eye contact. Microscopically, his eyebrows drew together in disappointment at her _normal_ reaction.

Kazue's friend rolled her eyes and turned to her. "Hey, anyway, I need some help with my homework. Come to my house after school?"

Kazue nodded. "Actually…" Niou caught her gaze as her eyes flicked up at him warily, and he smiled a knowing smile, honey-sweet. "I think I can help you now. Niou-san, I'm gonna leave you here, okay?"

"Sure, go ahead," Niou replied smoothly.

"Yay. 'Kay, thanks." The girl grabbed Kazue's hand and dragged her across the grounds.

Niou didn't even watch them go.

Wallflower, definitely.

* * *

In Niou's opinion, Nagoya Seitoku was a very dull school compared to Rikkai Dai. There were no dynamic personalities, no queen bee or popular group that everyone hailed. And, despite the prestige, nobody in the school strove for anything except good grades, so there was no competition except for the friendly kind. Or the boring kind, in Niou's opinion.

And none of the sports teams were good enough to merit a fanclub. The team members did it mostly as a leisure time activity or—for the girls—as means to keep themselves slim. This made team dynamics…not so dynamic; people didn't connect with other people out of mutual love for a sport, they didn't band together to protect some weak link of the team or stake out and spy on another team together.

Mostly, the days went by at a lazy pace, not that anyone really cared. It was natural for them, it seemed, to avoid confrontation. Sure, there was tension between some people in the occasional classes, and Niou would milk these tensions for all that they were worth in the future, but in the end, they probably weren't worth much.

It really was a boring school.

Normally Niou liked new things, he liked new experiences, he liked new personalities, new toys to play with. But after transferring from such a school as Rikkai—where everything, even the ridiculous things, seemed to merit a full-blown war, where students went so far as to sabotage their colleagues to come out on top, an eat-or-be-eaten, dog-eat-dog world—it was just _dull_ being apart of a community where students shrugged and moved on with their lives when they came out second or third, or even last. No screaming, crying, no extra nights for janitors as they spent time mopping up tearstains on the smooth tile floors.

It was so normal.

Niou liked a challenge—like he enjoyed Rubik's cubes and jigsaw puzzles—but he hated that there could be such a place in Japan that he could not stir up trouble within with a simple phrase, a simple opinion, thrown into a simple conversation. The students were just _too_ laid-back and _too_ subdued and _too_…ordinary. Even the people that had been on the middle school tennis team had scattered to other schools, driven away by the lethargy manifesting in Nagoya Sei.

But he didn't regret his choice. Because, despite the inertia of the school, there was something that had kept him away from all the other schools, like Hyōtei, and Shitenhouji, and Seishun. He knew without a doubt that he would be accepted into anyone of those schools and tennis teams with no trouble at all—but that was the problem.

Niou didn't _want_ to play tennis anymore. Yes, he used to love the shock on his opponents' faces when they realized that his game was more than _just tennis_. He loved how Yanagi could never predict how and where he would hit his shots, and he loved the feeling he got when his mind raced forward the moment the game began, planning out the match as though he was battling on a chessboard. And he loved being right.

But that got old. The pleasure dulled, and there was no such thing as a pleasure sharpener. He couldn't force the lethargy out of his limbs, the way his eyes sometimes drooped. Even playing Yukimura and Sanada got boring, because he knew that no matter how much he became someone else, how much he let _himself_ be eaten up, he could never beat them. Because he knew that despite how precise his illusions were, there were just some people that he could never surpass. Because he knew that he lacked the burning passion that they possessed.

It was pointless.

So Niou stopped, because there was no point in doing something he would never improve in and there was no point doing something he didn't love. But, ironically, being on that tennis team had been the only thing keeping his life from falling apart. Teasing Bunta and Kirihara, cosplaying with Yagyuu. Spending time with these people had been what had tied him to the right side. He'd always straddled the line between right and wrong, "dark and light." But it had been his friends who had kept him anchored onto that line. Without them, he realized, he just waved from side to side, never sure which side he would fall on, until he was already falling, falling, falling.

And then, he'd ended up here. A new place. New people. A new life.

A new beginning.

And this time, Niou Masaharu wasn't going to be so dependent on others. He wouldn't allow others to decide which road he went down; he would choose the road, and like in tennis, he would be right. His resolve was like Sanada's iron demeanor, unbreakable like Bunta's Wonder Castle.

He smiled, and slowly, the whoosh of wind kissing his skin and the new air reached his senses as he emerged from his thoughts. He'd skipped most of the classes on his first day of school, and had gone to a fraction of them during his second day. His third, he was skipping math in favor of planning on how to introduce chaos to this gray school. Because, no matter what, Niou was always up for a challenge. Except, unintentionally, he had drifted—he hadn't done that in a while, at least, not unintentionally. Especially not in public. His guard was relaxing.

Four chimes passed through the air, he opened his eyes to stare at the blue cloudless skies, and then the sound of kids arriving to sports clubs made him perk up his ears. Slowly, slowly, his eyes narrowed into cat-like slits as an idea came to mind.

* * *

Niou had skipped class again.

Narita noticed this the moment math had started, and angry at how easily his name had come to mind, she'd put him out of her thoughts for the rest of Anachi-sensei's lecture. But now school was dismissed and he was nowhere to be seen—and she tried not to think about him, really, she did, but—

Trouble, that's what Niou Masaharu was. She was sure of it. And he was rude. And annoyingly good at her weakest class. And…and…Her eyes narrowed as she spotted his black hair among the crowd (yes, she could identify him by his hairstyle, but she could to that with everybody), and after some hesitation she decided that if no one kept an eye on him, this school would be launched into the deepest level of hell before you could scream, "Damn you, Niou Masaharu!"

He was difficult to follow; she would give him that as she weaved as quickly as she could through the crowd. Miu had already been lost in the fray, but Narita fixed her eyes on him and refused to let that black head out of her sight. He didn't stop by his locker, so despite the heavy books weighing on her arms, she continued too. And then they were both swept along with the current of students and deposited onto the lawn of Nagoya Sei's front yard.

Narita swept farther along with the line of students, pivoting her body to keep her eyes on him as he nimbly picked off from the crowd and attached himself to a group of guys walking to practice. She made sure that he had rounded the corner before she also fought to the edge of the river of students and pulled away.

Her eyes narrowed in deep thought as she sprinted to the area where tennis and soccer was located. It was her job to protect this school—at least, that's what she told herself—and she wasn't about to fail.

* * *

Niou straightened up and inspected his handiwork from afar, letting a smirk to rise on his face as he saw the line of shampoo bottles, seemingly untouched. The shower area walls had words written in red on the walls, a message from the girls' track team. It wasn't a prank, but it was enough to cause a minor battle in the school. And with a little huffing, he could tease the flame into a forest fire. Plus, as a bonus, he had filled the shampoo bottles with ink. This was the girls' soccer team, so he expected that they would shower at the end of practice, no matter that they probably wouldn't even be sweating.

He swung the door open, tearing away the gum from the camera by the wall on the way out, and stepped outside. After the first day, he hadn't been idle. Everybody should have been in clubs or going home by now. Still—he had felt eyes on him as he rounded the corner to the club, so he looked around extra carefully, making sure to take special care with the shadows. His eyes narrowed as he spotted black hair flying behind the wall he had just rounded, and advanced on the person. He would catch them before they ran.

He didn't have to. Halfway there, she stepped out from behind the wall—hands planted awkwardly on hips, eyebrows knitted together sternly, pursed lips—and Niou was pleasantly surprised to find that it was Kazue.

"What were you doing in there?" she demanded, unmoving as he walked up to her.

But he didn't stop and barely acknowledged her as he passed by. Had it been anyone else, he might have been a bit unsure; maybe he would have stopped and persuaded him or her to his side, thrown in a smile or wink. But her—he was quite sure that she wouldn't tell on him. Not because he thought she would twist his actions into something explainable, appropriate, but because he knew what type of person she was. He knew that despite the bipolar front she put up, she was just desperate inside. Desperate to be special, to be noticed. She wouldn't tell on him, she would try to hold it over him, blackmail him, but really—Niou was sure that in the end, she was just one big bluff. He knew. He was right. He was always right.

And just as he suspected, she tried to stop him, but this time when she turned around, he had already disappeared. And he watched with a smirk adorning his lips as her mouth parted in confusion and she looked around for him. But she wouldn't find him. Niou was great at disappearing.

Niou was great at hiding.

* * *

A/N: So…good, bad, okay, or mediocre? Be sure to tell me what you think in reviews or PMs. Whichever. I really wasn't sure about writing most of the chapter in Niou's POV, but hopefully it was okay and not too OOC. So, thanks for reading. I'll try to post the next chappie soon. Yet again, thank you to **Allthequirkythings**.


	2. Torn

**Torn**

Narita chewed thoughtfully on her lower lip, knitting and un-knitting her eyebrows as she scanned the area before her that had been occupied by one Niou Masaharu only a second ago. She had just blinked and turned around; it was impossible that he could vanish so completely in so little time was what logical reasoning told her. Yet her eyes were telling a different story.

She sighed in resignation and turned to the girls' soccer locker room. A part of her told her to go in and check it out, fix the damage before someone got hurt and he was caught. But another part argued back, _If he gets in trouble, he'll deserve it_.

She took two steps forward and one step back, then sighed. Walking like that she supposed she'd get there eventually, maybe when the sun set and anyone around were gangs and lone-wolf crooks.

By sheer will, she managed to force herself around and pick up her books from the ground, where she had left them for the sake of looking dramatic when she caught him. Much good that had done.

She stopped by her locker to drop everything into her backpack. Maybe she should tell a teacher, she pondered. After all, as long as she didn't mention any names, it would be fine. It wouldn't do any damage to give the school board a heads-up. Besides, it was the right thing to do.

She had agreed to help Miu with homework, but her feet carried her to her homeroom. Her Japanese teacher was sitting behind her desk, grading papers. Narita unhooked her thumb from the strap of her backpack to tap softly on the wooden door, which had been left ajar as an invitation for all students to come in if they needed something. Aresu-sensei was the kind of teacher students confided in.

"Come in," Aresu-sensei called, only barely flicking her eyes up as Narita nudged the door open wider and slipped through.

"Hi, Aresu-sensei, I was just…" Narita trailed off, drawing her bottom lip up with her teeth.

"Mm-hmm…?" Aresu peered at her expectantly over oval-shaped spectacles.

Should she tell her? No, she wouldn't, Narita decided, second-guessed herself again. Why was the decision between right and wrong so difficult?

"Kazue-san, I enjoy your company, I really do, but these papers aren't going to grade themselves. So, whatever you have on your mind—just spit it out," Aresu said, with a hint of a drone coloring her words.

"Um…" Narita forced herself to release her lip and talk normally. "Um…uh…I just wanted to see if you needed help. With, uh, grading papers."

"You came up here for that?" Aresu asked disbelievingly, raising an eyebrow at Narita.

Narita nodded and smiled feebly.

She sighed and dropped her magenta pen in favor of kneading her temples. "If you insist. You know you can tell me anything, right Kazue-san?"

"Mm-hmm." Narita bobbed her head and dropped into a seat. She pulled out her red pen and calculator as Aresu handed her some test papers. "Thanks, sensei," she chirped.

She began to grade the papers, fidgeting awkwardly in her seat as she second- and third-guessed herself again and again: _Should I tell her? No. Yes? Maybe? Ugh._ Soon, the faint scritch-scratching of their pens writing in unison seemed like cicadas on a quiet summer morning. The sole tapping of Narita's fingers on the calculator made her feel self-conscious. She looked up through her bangs at Aresu doing the math in her head.

_Ring! Ring! Ring!_

Narita jumped in her seat, fingers fluttering down to the zipper of her backpack to answer her phone. She flipped it up and held it to her ear, eyeing Aresu for a reaction.

"Narita, where are you? You said you would help me with homework today." Miu's voice spoke into her ear. "Is something wrong? If you can't, it's fine."

Narita winced. With all that was going on inside her, she had forgotten. "Sorry. No, no, it's okay. I can come. Be there in ten, alright?"

"Sure, thanks. I have something to tell you. So hurry." Miu hung up.

_That_ couldn't be good, Narita thought, stuffing her phone into her pants pocket. She began to shuffle the papers together and looked up to see Aresu staring at her expectantly over her glasses. She winced again. "Sorry, sensei. I promised I'd help my friend with her homework. Here, I got most of the tests done, I think," she said, hitching up her backpack and handing the papers to Aresu. "I'll, uh, just be going now."

"Alright, Kazue-san. No need to worry." Aresu smiled at Narita reassuringly.

Narita tried smiling back and backed out the door.

Niou was still nowhere to be seen when she got outside. No surprise there. But Miu was waiting for her by the bus stop. She waved Narita over.

"Hey, what were you doing in there?" she asked as Narita jogged over.

"Grading papers with Aresu-sensei," Narita answered.

She pulled a face. "I hope you put in a good word about me. I'm dying in her class. Weird, right? 'Cause I actually speak Japanese. Anyways, you wouldn't believe what Gina just told me."

The bus pulled up to the stop and they got on.

"What?" Gina was on the soccer team. Maybe she had an idea what Niou had been doing in the girls' locker room.

Miu took a deep breath and cleared her throat, as she always did when there was a good story to tell and she was the storyteller. "Well, I was on the phone with her, 'cause I couldn't find you, and she sounded furious."

Narita cocked an eyebrow; Gina, furious? That was quite rare.

Miu grinned at her reaction. "I know, she's _never_ angry. I had the same thought. So, you know, I was like, 'Why?'" and she was basically fuming when she said that someone had replaced the shampoo in the girls' locker room with _ink_, and—"

"Wait, hold on a sec," Narita put in. _He couldn't have…_ "Ink? Seriously?"

Miu grinned and nodded. "Yeah, I know, I was surprised, too. And guess what?"

Narita couldn't imagine there actually being more to the offense. She should've reported him to Aresu-sensei when she had the chance.

"There were rude messages on the wall. Gina was, like, shrieking into the phone."

"Did they find out who did it?" Narita inquired, trying to keep calm despite the war clashing inside her. Would she get in trouble for not reporting him? Would he? Of course he would? But only if someone found out…

"No, but I bet whoever did it is gonna wish they hadn't," Miu cackled. "Big time." Typical Miu to enjoy something like this. Her ideal career was journalism and she was apart of the school paper; basically, she was a drama magnet.

Narita cringed. "Gina's gonna murder the guy who did this."

"'Guy'?" Miu asked. "Why d'you say that? It's probably a girl. On the track team, most likely."

Narita's eyes shot open wide. "The person left their name?"

Miu shook her head. "No, but Gina's sure of it. She says that the track team has always been jealous of the soccer team, 'cause they're so much more talented."

Narita rolled her eyes. She had no doubt that Gina would suspect them, but the surety that Miu lent was obviously her journalist instincts on steroids. Miu was _always_ looking for something interesting to write about.

Just then, a buzzing noise came from the pocket of Miu's backpack. Miu slipped it out and glanced at the caller ID, grinned at Narita. "That's her now. I'll patch you in, if you want."

Narita shook her head, and she shrugged and pressed the phone to her ear. Narita's insides were in tumoil. She was angry, furious really—both at herself and at Niou. Why hadn't she reported him? It was a _girls'_ locker room, for Kami-sama's sake. A boy coming out of it was something wrong in itself. And he'd filled shampoo bottles with ink, and had vandalized school property. Even worse, somehow, Narita was sure that he had known that the track team would be first suspected.

"Mm-hmm. Yeah, that's terrible." Miu lowered the phone from her ear, the grin on her face already blooming from ear to ear as she pressed the phone to her shoulder. "Guess what?" she whispered. "They confronted the track team, and _nobody_ spoke up. They were all saying that they had been 'practicing' the whole time."

_That's because they were,_ Narita thought. She was about to expose the real crook and crack the whole case open when she remembered the absolute ignorance that had been directed (or maybe not directed?) at her. He'd walked past her like she hadn't even been there. Why had he done that? Maybe he wasn't the crook, maybe he had been framed. Narita's mind entertained the idea for awhile.

_Stop it, you're being soft. It was him!_

_But why didn't he react when you asked him what he was doing?_

_Maybe…maybe he didn't see me…?_

_Yeah, right. Okay, well if that's the case, he seriously needs contacts._

_Maybe he dropped them in the sink this morning._

_Right, okay. Well, think about this: What if he just didn't bother because he doesn't care what you think?_

Narita visibly flinched. Then she scolded herself for being affected by that. There was no reason for him to value her opinion.

Now that it had proven its point, the annoyingly blunt side of her retreated back into its corner of her mind to silently gloat over its victory. Her optimistic side sat there, plainly exposed, to tend its wounded ego.

"Hey, Narita, what d'you think's going to happen?" Miu asked.

Deep in her thoughts, Narita replied, "Absolute hell."

* * *

The next morning, Narita woke up bright and early, the happenings of last night still fresh in her mind. She showered, brushed her teeth, ate breakfast, and dressed in her uniform with one sole goal in her mind: find Niou Masaharu. She wasn't sure what her next move would be, but she figured that it would be a challenge in itself to find him since the guy obviously had no qualms about skipping class. She'd have time to plan her move after that.

"You're oddly businesslike today," her mother observed as Narita tied up her shoes.

"Mm-hmm." Narita smiled tightly. "I'm going now." She straightened up and pushed the door open.

"Have fun," her dad called.

The door slammed close behind her as she stepped out into the street. Her family lived in a rather nice neighborhood. Neat houses sat adjacent and opposite each other in equally neat arrays. Each building looked the same, from the structure on the outside, to the interior décor. Few cars sat in the streets, leaving them safely open to kids.

Narita liked the prim-and-proper quality of her neighborhood, as she liked the friendliness of her school. She remembered how scared she had been on her first day of high school; she had been afraid that Nagoya Sei would be too noisy and too wild and too scary. But it had been the exact opposite, and Narita found that she barely had to adjust between her life at home and her life at school.

She had a feeling that was all about to change.

* * *

She stopped at the gates of Nagoya Sei, eyes scanning the grounds for Niou. Just as she had predicted, he was nowhere to be seen. She sighed and headed toward her friends, who were conversing in the shade of a cherry blossom tree.

Miu and Gina waved her over when they saw her. She clamped a hand over her mouth as she saw the state Gina's hair was in; the usual bleached-blond color had been dyed a deep aquamarine. "What happened?" she gasped.

Gina rolled her eyes and fingered one of her pixie-cut curls. "My hair got dyed blue and my parents were too busy yelling at me for conforming to 'peer-pressure' to let me shower it off. You shoulda seen it yesterday—it was almost _black_."

Miu nodded. "We were just discussing how she should get back at the track team."

Gina shrugged. "I'm not sure I'm gonna. I mean, it was probably just a joke. No harm done."

"Yeah, how do you even know the track team did it," Narita reasoned, grateful for Gina's practicality.

"Oh, come on!" Miu exclaimed. "Like you guys didn't think the same thing. And Gina, remember how mad you were last night? Don't you want some payback?"

Another shrug. "But the track team didn't say they did it. We can't be sure until we have actual, solid proof."

Miu rolled her eyes and slumped against the tree. "Well, whatever. But don't come running to me when you find out that I'm right."

Narita exchanged a dubious glance with Gina.

"We'll look for some clues and if it does turn out to be the track team, I'll treat you to a smoothie," Gina said, turning back to Miu.

Miu smiled and straightened up. "Deal. Better save up your money."

_Please let this be the end of it,_ Narita begged, casting her eyes heavenward.

But of course, she knew that nothing would end unless she took the initiative.

* * *

At lunch, Narita returned to her search with renewed vigor. She found Niou with one scan of the lunchroom and kept her eyes glued on him until he left. Then, she made her move.

"Why'd you do that?" she demanded, striding purposefully after him. The halls were empty now as most of the students were in teachers' rooms or in the cafeteria. Still, she didn't yell in case someone heard.

He turned to her. "I didn't do anything."

Narita rolled her eyes, snorting. "I saw you come out of the girls' locker room. You dyed my friend's hair blue and defaced school property."

He cocked an eyebrow and shrugged. "The blue-haired one? To be honest, the color quite suits her. My captain's hair was blue."

Narita's fists clenched at her sides in anger and shock. "You _also_ framed the track team."

"The track team?"

"Don't act innocent. I know it was you. I _saw_ you."

"Then why don't you turn me in? You have proof, don't you?"

Narita was silent.

He smirked. "No proof? Well, that seems to be a problem."  
She shook her head. "It doesn't matter; I don't have to turn you in."

"You can't," he reminded her.

"Well, I don't want to." She looked away, reluctant to meet his eyes. "Just—stop causing trouble for me."

His smirk spread lazily to a knowing grin. "Self-centered much?"

Narita looked down to hide her blush. "I—I mean, for my friends."

"No promises, Kazue-san."

When she turned back, he was already walking down the hall.

* * *

"So, guys, I have a plan to catch the track team," Miu whispered, grinning as her eyes shimmered with glee. She had gathered them in the library during study period with a plan that would surely "catch" the track team in their act. (Narita wondered what would happen when the real culprit was unveiled.)

Narita nodded absently. She didn't want to let her friend alienate the track team anymore—she did actually have a few friends in that particular clique—but no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't keep her mind focused on finding a solution.

"Miu, enough," Gina sighed. "I need to get back to work on this paper."

"No, no, just listen. Narita and I'll follow them around after school a bit. No harm done."

"Wait. I can't do that. I have stuff to do," Narita interrupted.

Miu snorted. "Yeah, right. We all know that you finished your homework. Plus, I need you there or else they'll catch me. You know I suck at not laughing, and with your kill-joy attitude there to reign me in, we'll be the perfect team." Narita still looked reluctant, so she laid her hands on the table and fixed large, pleading eyes on her. "Unless you want me to get caught."

"I guess I don't have a choice, do I?" Narita asked.

"Sure you do," Miu chirped.

Gina sighed, leaning back in the chair. "Look, I don't care. As long as I'm not dragged into this."

"Aye, aye, cap'n," Miu agreed, saluting her.

She leaned onto the table and massaged her temples. "I am _so_ not leading this."

Narita sighed and slammed her palms against the table. "I don't even wanna be apart of it."

Miu pouted.

* * *

"Miu, what is the point of this?" Narita whispered, shifting in the bush as a branch prodded her side.

Despite the leaves obscuring her face, Narita could still see her friend roll her eyes. "Narita, be quite. Or they'll here us."

And "they" were the girls' track team, about a few meters away, running laps around the track. Miu had practically dragged Narita by her hair to the track the moment school let out, muttering something about catching those "spiny weasels." Any other person would think she actually cared about recent offences, but Narita knew that she was just looking for something exciting to put down on paper.

"They aren't _doing_ anything," Narita complained. "I need to get home and finish that math homework."

"No!" Miu hissed, tugging Narita's arm down as she made to stand up. "If you go now, they'll see us and know we're on to them."

Narita rolled her eyes. "I think they figured that out when Gina confronted them yesterday."

_"Still!"_ Miu insisted sharply. "Just, Narita, can you stay?" She pinned Narita with puppy eyes.

Narita sighed. "Fine."

Miu beamed at her and refocused her attention on the track team. "Hey, look, practice is over!" she exclaimed, digging her nails into Narita's wrist.

"Finally," Narita exhaled, standing up.

Miu's nails dug into her wrist again and pulled her down. "No, we have to stay and follow them around more. We have to get proof that they did it."  
Narita growled. If that was the case, they would be there forever. "Ugh, you suck."

"And you swallow." Miu grinned.

* * *

"So, did you find anything?" Gina asked them the next day, leaning against the cherry blossom tree and smirking. Her hair was now a rather pretty color of turquoise and she was wearing the dragonfly pins Narita had gotten her for her birthday.

Narita absently rubbed her abused wrist, throbbing from being dragged around by Miu for three hours yesterday. They had followed the team all the way to a smoothie place downtown and then raced around town to keep track of the team when they split up. Narita had suggested she and Miu split up too, but Miu had stuck to her like glue, saying that Narita would just go home.

Miu sighed. "No, we lost them when they split up."

Gina rolled her eyes. "There are two of you. Why didn't you just split up, too?"

"That's what I suggested," Narita exclaimed, flinging her arms out and then retracting them stiltedly.

Miu snorted and crossed her arms over her chest. "You just wanted to go home."

"'Cause following them around any longer was ridiculous."

Miu smiled devilishly. "That, my friend, is where you are wrong." She slipped out her iPhone from her pocket and tapped on a recording app. "I got this yesterday."

"But I didn't see you with it yesterday," Narita pointed out.

"That's 'cause I was being subtle," Miu answered, pushing on the play button. "Now, shush."

The sound of a pedestrian-filled street played out.

Gina cocked her eyebrow at Miu coolly. "Really?"

She just grinned. "Listen."

Slowly, voices drifted out:

_"D'you think they'll find out?"_

_ "How could they? We were so careful."  
"But I have a bad feeling."_

_ "Oh, whatever. You're just being a worry-wart."_

Miu clicked it off, smirking. "See? I told you I was right."  
Gina twined her short hair around her index finger thoughtfully. "It does sound like them."

Narita frowned. She hadn't heard that yesterday, but then again, she'd been so tired by the hour-thirty-minutes mark she could have easily missed it. But Miu couldn't be right, right? How else could she explain why Niou had been in the girls' locker room? Boys generally didn't emerge from girls' locker rooms.

Miu grinned triumphantly. "What do you think of the headline 'Girls' Track Team Caught for Vandalism by Local Hero, Chiyo Miu'?"

Gina rolled her eyes. "Hold it. At least, let's give the team a chance to confess before reporting them to the principal."

"Fine," Miu muttered. "You're just like Narita: a total buzz-kill."

Gina grinned and slapped Narita's back. "That's what she said."

Narita smiled back thinly.

What was Niou playing at?

* * *

A/N: An update! Okay, well, I hoped you liked this one. A little glimpse of Narita's friends, I suppose. Remember to leave what you think below and yeah…that's about it. Hopefully, you liked it.


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